****

## Human Resources

## ...Managing the Association’s Most Valuable Asset

Human resource management is a balancing act.  At one extreme, you hire qualified people who are well suited to meet the needs of the business.  At the other extreme, you train and develop employees to meet those needs.  Most employee associations fall between the two extremes.  Essentially, the employee association’s goal is to hire or promote the best qualified person or people it can find ***and***afford.  Afford?   Hmmm.     That’s a topic for another discussion.  Best qualified you can find?  That, I believe, we can address.

Where to begin.  You’ve identified the need to fill a vacancy.  You’ll need a job posting.  The job posting should include the job title, brief description of duties to be performed, duty hours, duty location, guidelines for application, and the last date to apply, at a minimum.  You may also include information pertaining to pay and benefits (as appropriate for your particular situation).  Also consider stating the minimum qualifications required and those qualifications desired.  The posting  should 

clearly  indicate  that  the  position  is  not a USG position.  In fact, we caution associations from the use of USG job applications.  Employee associations should develop a standard job application to provide to applicants.  

The next step is posting the job.  Where will your applicant pool come from?  Employee associations have a great deal of flexibility in the hiring process and are not required to follow USG regulations and policies pertaining to the recruitment and retention of association employees.  As such, your applicant pool may be a combination of eligible family members, U.S. citizens, local national citizens, and third country national citizens.  Keep in mind, employee association positions are *not* subject to the priority placement of eligible family members at post.  Bottom line, you hire the best qualified person you can find and afford.

So... the posting closes and all applications are collected.  Applications should be reviewed in their entirety prior to scheduling interviews.  Determine who will review the applications.  For example, applications for a cashier position should be reviewed by the activity manager (i.e., commissary manager, video club manager, club manager) or the general manager where no activity manager exists.  Applications for the position of general manager should be reviewed by the Board of Directors or hiring/selection committee delegated by the Board.  Applicants should be ranked based on their level of education and work experience.  Other experience may be considered as it may relate to the duties to be performed.  All interviews should be conducted by the same individual or individuals to ensure continuity and fairness in the selection process.  Standard questions should be developed for use in interviews to include some job-specific questions.  For example, accounting applicants should be queried on basic accounting principles.  

Upon completion of all interviews, a selection may be made and an offer extended to the selected applicant.

The next course of action is often overlooked by many associations.  You’ve selected the new employee, settled on a compensation package and agreed to a start date.  The very next action is to draft an employment agreement outlining those details.  A boilerplate employment agreement is available from the CR intranet site.  Access to the site is via the Department’s internet explorer.  Click on Administration (M/A), scroll down to Office of Operations, and click on Office of Commissary and Recreation Affairs.  The boilerplate may be downloaded from the library. 

The employment agreement must take into account local labor laws as they apply to employees. (In some countries local labor laws may also apply to third country nationals and/or U.S. citizens.)  Often, post’s human resources office can provide guidance pertaining to local labor laws.  Keep in mind, a signed contract will not supercede applicable labor laws.  Once drafted, feel free to request a review from the CR staff.  In general, we can point out potential areas of concern and request a legal opinion, if necessary.  However, we will be unable to identify violations of local labor laws.  For that, you must utilize a local attorney or other individual at post  intimately familiar with such laws.

Now that you have carefully crafted the employment agreement, you need only obtain the appropriate signatures.  Employment agreements should contain one Board member signature (usually the Board Chair) and the employee’s signature.  

Present the employment agreement to the employee along with his/her description of duties.  Upon signature, a copy of the agreement should be provided to the employee.  The original document should be retained in the employee’s file.   

What’s next?  Now that your newly appointed employee is on staff, how do you retain him/her?  You must ensure that the individual is provided the necessary tools to perform the job while developing his/her skills.  To do so will require a combination of resource materials, training, and feedback.  Resource materials and on-the-job training must be developed in-house and tailored to each individual employee associations’ needs.  The best method for providing and receiving feedback is performance reviews.  In the next issue of the *CRonicle*, we’ll follow-up this article with guidance for developing employee standards, implementing the performance review process, and  tips for incentives that will help to keep your employees happy.  

**Cooling Off and Keeping Safe**

**Safe Pool Operations Begin With You**

It’s practically summertime in Washington.  Soon, the swimming pools will be filled with screams of excitement.  Although employee association swimming pools do not follow the same period of operation as do those in the U.S., what all swimming pools should have in common is safety.  

A safe pool operation begins with the rules.  Bilingual signs, if appropriate, stating the bather’s rules must be posted in prominent areas surrounding the pool to inform users of hazards and prohibitions.  Association management may find it necessary to develop specific rules for their needs.  Basic rules include the following:

· There will be no swimming unless the lifeguard is present.

· No horseplay – no running, pushing, shoving, or dunking

· No diving (except where designated)

· No glass or alcoholic beverages in the pool area

· No children without adult supervision

· Swimmers must shower before entering the pool

· No individuals under the influence of alcohol or drugs in or around the pool

· No eating, drinking, or smoking (except in designated areas)

· No pets

· In the event of a rescue or any emergency/serious injury, Post 1 must be notified immediately

Remember, it is the association’s responsibility to ensure that unauthorized users are kept out of the pool area.  It is best to enclose the pool area with a fence preferably seven feet high (five minimum).  In addition, the fence should include self-closing, self-latching lockable hardware to remain locked during non-use hours.  

Diving is a major concern.  The following measures should be taken to prevent incidents of injury as a result of diving:

· Diving must be prohibited in the absence of a diving board.

· Bathers must not be allowed to dive into shallow areas of the pool.

· The pool must be clearly marked to designate depth.

· The pool must be cleaned at regular intervals to ensure clear water.

· Diving traffic must be monitored to prevent collisions.

· Divers must be instructed to steer up immediately upon entering the water.

Even with the safest of measures, accidents can occur.  The Department’s Office of Safety/Health and Environmental Management (SHEM) encourages the use of lifeguards during all hours of operation.  However, if it is truly impossible to provide trained lifeguards, a “responsible person” must be designated and present at all times.  “Responsible person” is defined as a person knowledgeable in water safety, over 18 years old, who is a former lifeguard, swimming instructor, or other person who has demonstrated water safety skills.  Aquatic safety is dependent upon the existence of at least one caring responsible person when someone is in the water.  Remember, pool safety is everyone’s responsibility.  

Guidelines pertaining to swimming pool characteristics and physical safeguards are available from SHEM’s Safety, Occupational Health, and Environmental Management Resource Guide, Volume 1, Third Edition. 

*And the Winners Are...*

In March, Ms. Elizabeth Konick of the Bucharest Employees Recreation Association (BERA) in Romania was selected as the Employee Association Manager of the Year for 2000.  In her nomination, the BERA Board most notably cited Elizabeth for her resounding impact on the BERA and the role she played in greatly improving morale at post. 

Congratulations to Ms. Jill Johnson of the U.S. Embassy Recreation Association (USERA) in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia and Mr. Cosmas Vrampas of the American Employees Association (AEA) in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso for second and third places, respectively.

The remaining nominees in alphabetical order by location are:

Jodi Hu – Beijing, China

Karen McKeever – Brussels, Belgium

Mai Landymore – Chennai, India

Terry Weber – Dakar, Senegal

Michael Angara – Moscow, Russia

Barbara Jaeger – Olso, Norway

Carmen Jimenez – Panama City, Panama

Christy Chesnutt – Vienna, Austria

Malgorzata Kuhn – Warsaw, Poland

The annual award process is announced each January.  Nominations are accepted through mid-February and should be submitted by Boards of Directors based upon the manager’s performance for the calendar year just prior.  The winners receive framed certificates and a cash award (in the amount of $1000, $600, and $300, for first, second and third places, respectively).  Copies of this year’s winning nominations are available from CR upon request.

Congratulations again to the winners and nominees for making 2000 a great year for your associations!

*What’s News*

Do you know the latest additions to the CR intranet site?  If not, please take note of the following changes. 

· Collective cable #01-001 (Reporting Requirements for Year 2001)

· Collective cable #01-002 (Insurance Requirements/Optional Coverage)

· Collective cable #01-003 (Federal Tax Deposits)

· *CRonicle* newsletter, second quarter 2001 edition

· Updated CR staff list

We have also revised the Internal Revenue Service instructional to include changes in the IRS tax code for year 2001 and posted the recently revised Board of Directors Handbook on the site.

Access to the site is via the Department’s internet explorer.  Click on “Administration M/A”, scroll down to “Office of Operations (OPR)”, and click on “Office of Commissary and Recreation Affairs (A/OPR/CR)”.

If you have any suggestions for improving our site (and some of our best initiatives come from suggestions from the field) or would like assistance in finding guidance on a particular subject from the site, please contact Operations Team Leader Annie Dickson by phone, fax, email, internet (crlogon@erols.com), or via our intranet site.  Please remember to include your post name (city, country) when contacting us.

***IT ALL ADDS UP***

Last year, we began a feature column to be dedicated to accounting/financial related issues.  This quarter, we report on budgets.

Unfortunately, as a staff we find it fairly common that employee associations do not operate with budgets.  The fact is that budgets are not mandated.  Maybe, they should be.  

No matter how small the operation, a budget is the single most effective financial management tool available to Boards of Directors.  A budget serves to summarize the goals of management in a formal plan and allows the Board to quantify targets for sales, cost of goods sold, operating expenses, net income, and cash flow.  Budgeting becomes especially important for associations experiencing cash flow problems.  By budgeting, management is able to respond to change in an efficient manner.  It obliges the Board to think ahead and prepare for the affects of such things as a change in the composition of the membership, loss of sales, or replacement of fixed assets, to name a few.  Budgeting also compels the Board to compare the success of one operation (e.g., commissary) to other operations (e.g., cafeteria, preschool, etc.) keeping in mind the overall goal that each revenue generating activity should be financially self-sustaining. 

In preparing the budget, historical data and trends *generally* serve as the benchmark (provided historical data is reasonably representative of present day operations).  Analyzing sales is the starting point for budgeting for most associations because inventory levels, purchases, and operating expenses are, by and large, determined based on sales activity.   Begin by listing known expenses and cash outlays from previous years.  Review these and note any trends as increasing or decreasing.  Are increases in expenses controllable or, are they fixed?

Project membership demographics for the next calendar year.  How will the demographics affect sales and use of services?

Review past years’ markup policy on sales and services.  Did the markup cover costs related to the sales/services?  Did the revenues cover overhead expenses?  Was the markup too low to provide for an adequate profit margin?  Or, did unanticipated expenses arise?

Review present inventory to determine salability.  Measures should be in place to ensure that inventory replenishment selections meet the needs of the membership.

Plan for contingencies.  Analyze non-cash expenses such as depreciation.  Anticipate the replacement of fully depreciated assets.

After completing the above steps, you’ll have the necessary tools to project revenues, expenses, and cash disbursements.  These projections should be detailed in the budget.  The budget should be prepared based on the association’s reporting year – in other words, on a calendar year basis.

The budgeting process does not end with the preparation of the report.  For a budget to be effective, management must continuously compare actual performance with planned performance.  Actual results should be monitored on a monthly basis.  In fact, the Board should receive monthly actual vs. projected financial statements.  Monitoring actual results will allow the Board to implement corrective measures in a timely manner and to assure that money is being spent as the Board has voted it be spent.

Questions regarding the budgeting process may be directed to the CR Accounting Team.  

As you can see, the CR mailbox is still a bit empty.  At the time of this writing, we are just a few short weeks from the June 1 submission of the compliance certification.  The May 1 deadline for the submission of the questionnaire, association prepared financial statements, and audit report has come and gone.

Unfortunately, a number of employee associations remain delinquent in submitting one or more of these reporting requirements.  We encourage employee associations to meet these deadlines and keep us informed of any anticipated delays.  The information we gather from these reports assists us in supporting you.

For those associations currently delinquent in submitting one or more reports, please contact us and request an extension of the due date (if you have not already done so).  We are available by phone (202)663-1330, fax (202)663-1329, Department email (A/OPR/CR), and via the internet (CRLOGON@EROLS.COM).  Requests may also be made via cable slugged for “A/OPR/CR”.

Remaining reporting requirements for CY01 are as follows:

DUE JUNE 1, 2001:

· Compliance Certification (prepared by the Principal Officer of his/her designee to the employee association board).

DUE AUGUST 15, 2001:

· Semi-annual Association Prepared Financial Statements for the period January 1 – June 30, 2001.

DUE NOVEMBER 1, 2001:

· Assessment Payment (based on CY00 gross revenue).

*Back Talk*

*We heard that...*

*In Costa Rica*...men shake hands.  Costa Rican women pat left arms.  Women who are good friends will kiss cheeks.  

*In Columbia...*when dining, many Colombians use the continental style of eating, with the fork always remaining in the left hand.

*In New Zealand...*chewing gum and using toothpicks in public are considered bad manners.

*In Burma*....the feet are considered unclean and therefore it is very rude to raise your feet, such as placing them on a table or desktop.

*In Iran*...avoid blowing your nose in public. 

*In Kenya*...using the left hand to receive a gift is considered impolite.

*In Austria*...stroking an imaginary beard signifies that someone’s comment is old and worn.

*In the next issue of the CRonicle, we will serve up a feature article providing guidance for developing employee standards*and implementing the performance review process.  We will also continue our feature column “*It All Adds Up*” with an accounting topic, and also introduce you to a new CR employee.  Until then, that’s all folks!

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